Wednesday, July 4, 2012

4th of July Trivia quiz!

These are 20 questions selected from the U.S. citizenship test given to immigrants. I wrote the additional bonus questions which accompany each citizenship test question. Answers are provided after the test; you're on your honor not to cheat!
If you do well with the multiple choice format, keep in mind that immigrants seeking citizenship have to answer these orally, fully to the satisfaction of the test giver, WITHOUT the crutch of multiple choice answers being provided.
The bonus questions are provided by me, however, not MSNBC or the citizenship test.

1. Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?

A.

George Washington

B.

Thomas Jefferson

C.

James Madison

D.

John Hancock

Bonus point question -- WHERE did he write it?

2. When was the Constitution written?

A.

1774

B.

1776

C.

1787

D.

1865

Bonus point question - WHERE was it written?

3.What are the first words of the Constitution?

A.

When, in the course of human events

B.

In order to form a more perfect Union

C.

To whom it may concern

D.

We the People

These are way too easy - so here's the next bonus question: What are the LAST words of the original constitution? (sure, you'll have to look it up -- but what a great trivia question to ask your colleagues
on your next day back at work.)

4. What do we call the first ten amendments to the Constitution?

A.

The Preamble

B.

The Bill of Rights (Your Answer)

C.

The Statute of Liberty

D.

Declaration of Independence

So let's test your knowledge of that Constitution a little further with a two part two point bonus question: What number was the amendment that resulted in prohibition of alcohol (aka the Volstead Act) and what was the number of the amendment that repealed prohibition?
5. Which of the following is NOT a right outlined in the Preamble to the Declaration of Independence?A. Life B. LibertyC. Right to bear armsD. Pursuit of happiness

Bonus question : How many patriotic revolutionaries signed the Declaration of Independence?
6. Which one of these is a right guaranteed by the First Amendment?
A. Freedom of the press
B. Right to trial by jury
C. Right to bear arms
D. Right to happiness

Bonus question - What was the 27th Amendment, and when did it go into effect?

8. Why does the United States Flag have 13 stripes?
A. One for each state in the Union.
B. The number of seats in the cabinet
C. They represent the 13 original colonies
D. One for each article of the Constitution

What was the greatest number of stripes that the official flag of the United States ever had?
9. Which of these was not among the original 13 states?
A. New Hampshire
B. New York
C. Delaware
D. Vermont

Which state was the first state to ratify the Constitution, earning that first star on the U.S. flag and the distinction of being the very first state in the United States?

10. What territory did the United States buy from France in 1803?

A. Maine
B. Alaska
C. Vermont
D. Louisiana

My bonus question - the Louisiana purchase included land that was later ceded to Canada, forming the southern parts of two provinces. What geographic demarcation that forms the 48 state northern U.S. boundary gave that Louisiana purchase territory to Canada?

11. Which one of the following is NOT one of the three branches of government?

A. Legislative
B. Executive
C. Judicial
D. Federal

Bonus question - how did we originally elect our Vice President?

12. The House of Representatives has how many voting members?

A. 100
B. 365
C. 435
D. 646

Bonus question - what early Vice President gave his name to oddly shaped congressional districts, and what is that kind of distorting of districts called?

13. We elect a U. S. Senator for how many years?

A. 2
B. 4
C. 6
D. 8

What were the first three new states admitted to the Union AFTER the original 13?

14. In what month do we vote for President?

A. January
B. February
C. September
D. November

Bonus question, when did it become the law that we vote on a Tuesday? (give yourself a pat on the back and a gold star if you know WHY we vote on a Tuesday.)

15. If both the President and the Vice President can no longer serve, who becomes President?

A. Secretary of State
B. Secretary of Defense
C. The Speaker of the House
D. President Pro Tempore of the Senate

Bonus question - what does the President Pro Tempore of the Senate DO?

16. How many justices of the Supreme Court are there?

A. 3
B. 5
C. 7
D. 9

Bonus question - which came first, a black Supreme Court Justice or a female Supreme Court Justice?
Double bonus points if you can name the first female Supreme Court Justice and who appointed her.

Bonus question answers:
1. the Graff House, also known as the Declaration House, in Philadelphia PA
2. the Philadelphia State House- there were three committees established - the declaration committee, the constitution committee, and the treaty with France committee, that went to work in Philly.
3. "done in Convention by the Unanimous Consent of the States present the Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and Eighty seven and of the Independence of the United States of America the TwelfthIn witness whereof We have hereunto subscribed our Names,"
4. 18th and 21st Amendments
5. 56 - but they signed it over a period of months
6. Freedom of religion, Freedom of Assembly, Freedom of Speech
7. originating in 1789, it went into effect in 1992; it stipulates that no increases or decreases in salary for members of Congress do not go in effect until the next term of office / after an election has intervened.
8. 15; early in the history of the U.S., a new stripe and a new star were added for each additional state admitted to the Union.
9. Delaware
10. 49th parallel
11. the Vice President was originally the candidate who had the second greatest number of votes.
12. Elbridge Gerry, gerrymandering
13. Vermont, Kentucky, and Tennessee
14. Congress agreed on Tuesday in 1845, in 1875 included Congressional elections and in 1914 made it the official date for Senate elections
15. the President Pro Tempore presides when the Vice President is not present, and is usually the most senior member of the Senate; he or she is also just behind the Speaker of the House in presidential succession.
16. Thurgood Marshall was the first black Supreme Court Justice, appointed in 1967; Sandra Day O'Connor was the first woman Supreme Court Justice, appointed by Ronald Reagan.
17. There are absolutely NO requirements in the Constitution for becoming a Supreme Court Justice - not age, not age, citizenship, or experience - no law degree or previous experience as a judge is specified.
18. Before, by approximately one year
19. Andrew Johnson; while Lincoln was an early Republican, Andrew Johnson was a Democrat.
20. the 1783 Treaty of Paris ended the conflict between England and the U.S.; the Peace of Paris was a series of treaties that ended the conflict between U.S. allies France, Spain and the Dutch Republic and England - each nation signed a separate treaty with England.

2 comments:

I missed number 9, got the rest of the regular questions. On the bonus questions, I got 11 and 3 partials (knew 2 of the 3 new states; knew Jefferson wrote the Declaration in a Philadelphia boarding house but didn't know the name of the house; Got O'Connor/Reagan but missed Marshall).